How does a journalism professor end up as the subject of an editorial cartoon? By his fierce advocacy for local journalism and media on Long Island for more than 50 years!
Professor Karl Grossman, American Studies/Media & Communications Department, was recently captured in an editorial cartoon in several local newspapers including The Southhampton Press, The East Hampton Press, The Shelter Island Reporter, and the Sag Harbor Express. The satirical cartoon depicts a subscriber reading a newspaper that includes topics on various endangered species and environments - whales, polar bears, the rainforest - and his thought bubble reflects his thoughts on the "endangered" nature of local journalism.
For additional context, the artist Peter Waldner, highlighted Grossman's photo on the newspaper's front page with the headline "Grossman speaks truth to power for fifty years."
Grossman, who has taught journalism at SUNY Old Westbury for 44 years, is a frequent contributor to local journalism, and has earned awards such as the John Peter Zenger Award from the New York Bar Association, the Generoso Pope Foundation Award for Investigative Journalism, and was an inaugural member of the Long Island Journalism Hall of Fame.
Currently working on his eighth book, Grossman's previous books include “Cover up: What You Are Not Supposed to Know about Nuclear Power,” “Power Crazy,” and “The Wrong Stuff: The Space Program's Nuclear Threat to Our Planet.” He has written numerous articles and narrated award-winning documentaries during his long career.